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“Paige, hello?! Paige you there? Hello!!!”
“Huh, what? Oh! Sorry I dozed off.”
“Well obviously!” My best friend Casey whined over Skype. “Will you please come out of your depression, he’s just a guy get over it. I mean you’ve been moping for forever, it’s already been like a day!”
“Well I’m sorry once on bad thing happens me think of Taylor’s death. I don’t know if you’ve noticed but I’m still getting over that and that was 10 months ago!”
“Hun the only reason I’m doing this is because I love you too much to let you just sit around and mope for the rest of your life. So get dressed and get the hell over here!”
“Fine,” I hung up. I got up, giving into my annoyingly persistent friend. She had been begging me to come over all Christmas Break, but I hadn’t wanted to leave the house. The only reason I was giving in now was because it was the last day of break, and If I didn’t go see her now I wouldn’t ever hear the end of it tomorrow back at school. As I went down the stairs my monster of a dog started barking. When I had come down the stairs there were five people in the kitchen that did not live in my house. They were my big brother, Austin, friends, covered in……..snow? “ Look sis it’s snowing!!” my little brother Jack exclaimed,” We don’t have to go to school tomorrow! And look all of Austin’s friends have come to play in the snow with us.”
“That’s awesome buddy!” I said as I scruffed his hair. I said this with fake enthusiasm. To me snow would never mean happiness not after what had happened. In the kitchen my brother, along with his friends Blake, Cody, Jake, Jaci and his girlfriend Melanie, started in on eating all of our food.”Where’s mom?” I asked.
“She and dad went to the grocery store, the guys are staying over until we have to go back to school, so they are stocking up.”
“Great, I get to be the little sister …….again.” I said showing my lack of enthusiasm
Cody lightly punched me in the shoulder. “Come on it’s not so bad. Wait I take that back, yes it is.”
“See Cody gets it!”
“Well since I know how much it sucks, I’m actually going to acknowledge your existence.” Cody said proudly, as if it were the biggest good deed he could ever do.
“Wow really! This is going to be the greatest night of my life!!!” They all laughed at this, and so did I. “Hey, can you do me a favor?”
“I guess since Cody’s signed me up to actually pay attention to you. What do you need sis.”
“I need you to call Casey, as dad, and tell her I’m not allowed to come over cause my room’s not clean or something.” I handed him the phone, but before it was in his hand Cody had reached in and snatched it.
“She knows your voice, therefore I will be the one calling.” He looked at me daring me to object when I didn’t he looked at the phone.
“It’s in favorites,” I said pressing the button for him. Cody stared at the phone with a confused expression. Then slowly he looked up at me with a devlish green. “ Who’s this Kyle guy and why does he have a heart by his name?” I snatched the phone out of his hand, I thought I had deleted his number from my entire phone. I clicked the contact and pressed delete, and handed the phone back to him. “He’s nobody, just call Case please.” I guess the look on my face told him not to question me any farther, because he didn’t. He hit the call button and pressed the phone to his ear.
“Hello,” Cody started in a really deep voice that mimicked my dad’s perfectly.” Due to the lack of cleanliness of Paige’s room we are not allowing her to leave the house. Sorry she messed up your plans. Have a good day.” He took the p-hone away from his ear and hung up. All at once we started laughing, as far as impersonating my father, my dad couldn’t have done a better job himself.
Austin wiped a tear from his eye,” That was absolutely perfect man!” They high-fived Cody seeming exceedingly proud of himself, he took a bow.
“I’m so glad you all enjoyed my performance.” This bit made everyone laugh even harder. Just then the back door flew open and my parents stepped in covered in snow and carrying armloads of grocery bags.
“Hey Mama Cooper!!!” Melanie said.
“Austin,” my dad grumbled, “come outside and help us.
“Sure.” Austin zipped up his coat and headed into the snow with my parents.
“Paige, will you start putting away the groceries.” My mom asked in her sweet falsetto voice. It rang through the kitchen like chimes.
I headed over to the mound of plastic bags on the counter and started putting the contents away. “You guys are welcome to watch T.V.” they shuffled over to the couch and watched while I put groceries away.
»»»
Three hours later, around eight o’clock, they all decided to go sledding. I watched as they put layer upon layer of clothing. Cody looked up at me, “You’re not going in the snow in that are you?”
I looked down at my fleece pajama pants and sweatshirt, “What’s wrong with this?”I laughed, “but no I’m not going. I’m not really a play in the snow girl, more of a look at how pretty the snow is from the window.”
“Aw come on, it’ll be fun.”
“Nope,” Cody was about to protest when my mother walked in.
“Picture time!” she sang waving her camera as we all groaned. My mother could not take a single picture in under fifteen minutes to save her life. So when she says “picture time” we hear “you sit still for two hours while I attempt, but fail to take a good picture”.
“No groaning,” my mom snapped. “It’s just a couple of pictures.” I slowly backed away from the group as they all moved in closer. It was my mission to avoid this picture time at all costs, I almost succeeded until my mom started looking at the people in the pictures. “Where’s Paige?”
They all turned to look at me, “Get over here,” she waved for me to join the group.
“You know mom,” I started, crossing my fingers behind my back praying this excuse would work.” I’m not really going in the snow, so there’s really no reason to be in the pictures.”
“ Don’t be silly, get over here.”
“ You have to catch me first!” I made a run for the stairs, I got halfway to them when someone had their arms around my waist. They lifted me and carried me to where the group stood. Cody whispered in my ear, “If I have to go through this hell then you do to.”
He set me down in front of him by the group, I realized that when he put me down he didn’t release me. “You can let me go now.” I said.
“And risk you running away again? Now how stupid do you think I am?”
“I don’t think you want me to answer that question.”
“You do realize I have you in a hold right now?” he would have gone on but then my mom said, “One, two, three,” there was a blinding flash from the camera and I went blind temporarily. After I got my sight back Cody let me go, “So back to our previous conversation, you will be sledding with me today.”
“No I’m not. I don’t like playing in the snow.” I argued
“Have you even been sledding before?”
“No and I’m in no hurry to change that.”
“Come on you have to try it at least once.”
“Please just drop it, I’m not going.”
“Oh yes you are,” He leaned forward grabbed my legs and flung me over his shoulder.
“Put me down!” I screamed.
“Chill chicka we’re just going outside.” I gave in and let him carry me into the garage. Before he set me down he asked, “If I put you down, will you run away again.”
“No.I have a question though, why do you want me to go sledding so badly?”
“Hmmm I don’t know, I just feel like it’s a life experience that you need to have.” I turned and looked at the dark street. There was a group of kids at the top the hill, I watched as one of them sat down on a red sled and took off down the steep decline. All of the sudden my went straight to last Spring Break.
Taylor and I both in skis and ready to go on our first run of the trip. We counted to three and took off racing down the slope. Taylor turned to look at me, we both laughed from the rush. Then it all went bad. She wasn’t paying attention and the tip of her ski hit a tree, she spun out of control. Then she hit another tree and another and then another spinning off into the forest. I screamed kicked out of my skis and ran after her. When I finally found her she was laying unconscious in the snow.
“Paige! Hello. You in there?” I felt Cody tap my head. Suddenly hot tears were running under my cheeks. I sprinted into the house, upstairs, and into my room. I slammed and locked the door. I flung myself onto the bed clutching the pillow that had Taylor’s picture on it. I sobbed uncontrollably without and end. Before I could stop it images flooded my mind. Taylor laying peacefully in the casket, Peyton, her little sister, holding my hand crying knowing her best friend was gone forever, Her mom hugging and crying over the tiffany blue casket as they lowered it into the ground. All I could do was sit and cry wishing that Taylor was there to hold and console me. There was a knock on my door, “Paige?”it was my mother.
“Go away.” I mumbled
“Come on Paige, tell me what’s wrong.”
“Just leave me alone!” I shouted. I heard the stairs creak, I guessed she had gone downstairs.
Twenty minutes after I had cried myself out , there was another knock on the door.”Mom I told you to go away!”
“It’s me,” a voice said,” can I come in?” It was Cody’s voice.
“Why?”
“I wanted to make sure you were ok.”
“Fine.”The door creaked open and he walked in. He sat on the opposite side of the bed from me, I clutched the pillow tight to my chest; Pressing the picture to my heart. “First I’m really sorry for what I did I had no idea that would scare you.”
“Scare me? You think it scared me?”
“Well yeah that’s what I figured. Is that not the reason?”
I shook my head.”That’s nowhere near the reason. Um did Austin ever tell you what happened last Spring Break?” Now he was the one shaking his head.”Well last year I went skiing with one of my best friends from when we lived in Dallas. On our first run of the trip Taylor veered off and hit a tree. She spun out of control and couldn’t stop herself. She hit multiple trees after that. I was the only one with her, so I ran into the forest to find her. By the time I did she was unconscious and barely able to breathe. I called 911, but by the time they found us she was in really bad shape. In the helicopter they had to put her on all these machines, and when we got to the hospital she had to stay on them to live. She had major trauma to her brain and lungs. After four days we pulled her off of life support. I was there the entire time, I saw everything. So seeing snow just starts those memories in my head again.”
“Oh my God, Paige I had no idea .” I could feel tears welling up in the corner of my eyes again. I put my face in the pillow. Cody scooted closer and wrapped his arms around me letting me sob into his shoulder. He pulled me back, holding my shoulders at arms length, I realized I had stopped sobbing at this point. “Paige if I can give you any advice, it’s that you don’t need to sit in here and focus on all that sadness you need to go live your life that’s what she would have wanted. You need to distract yourself. Focusing on it will only make it worse.”
“I guess your right.”
“So come on. Let’s go downstairs and do something.” I nodded, got up, and headed for the door, he followed.
When we got downstairs everyone else was still outside. Cody looked at me, “so what do you want to do?”
“If you want to go play in the snow, you can. I can keep myself busy.”
“Don’t be so stupid! Im with you until, well, I don’t know when, but your stuck with me.”
“Great, just what I always wanted.” I said layering on thick sarcasm. I turned and gave him a smile to let him know that I was joking.
He laughed, “Now there’s the Paige I know.”
“You know what I want to do?”
“What?”
“Sit in the trunk of my mom’s car, drink hot chocolate, and watch people play in the snow.”
“Really?” he looked at me questioningly.” You don’t have to be tough you know.”
“ Who says I’m acting? I have to put up with Austin, Jack, and my dad. I was born tough.”
“Good point.” We both laughed,” Shall we?”
“Let’s do it!”